Allergan rethinks marketing of Botox, implants

June 7, 2007

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

1 of 1

AT THE SHOW: Lisa Mack of Allergan minds the company's booth at last month's Aesthetic Show in Las Vegas, which was sponsored by the Medical Insight research firm of Aliso Viejo. COLIN STEWART, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

AT THE SHOW: Lisa Mack of Allergan minds the company's booth at last month's Aesthetic Show in Las Vegas, which was sponsored by the Medical Insight research firm of Aliso Viejo. COLIN STEWART, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Allergan is a pioneer, and not just as the innovator that convinced consumers that botulism toxin can be good for us.

Its latest pioneering initiative is aimed at nothing less than changing the way we think about our bodies. The Irvine-based company that brought us Botox intends to persuade us we should feel free to choose the body we want.

I'm not a big fan of doctors injecting, slicing and rearranging body parts merely to make the ensemble more attractive. But I'm dazzled by the ways Allergan makes the idea sound appealing.

That's why today's column pays scant attention to the $600 million a year that Allergan spends researching and developing innovative new products. Instead, I'm focusing on the marketing innovations that generate the money that makes those new products possible.

Breast implants. In its new breast-implant campaign, for example, Allergan's marketers imply that implants are artful, like designer clothing. Even though implants are basically plastic bags filled with silicone or saline solution, Allergan portrays them as sources of power, freedom, individuality and self-confidence.

That's a big change from last year, when Allergan bought Santa Barbara-based Inamed and its breast implants for $3.2 billion. Then, the implants were labeled "Style 68," "Style 101," etc.

The old labels were cold and clinical, so Allergan is giving them a new identity that sounds natural, feminine and artful. In a new marketing campaign, they're the "Natrelle collection of breast implants."

Breast implants can seem crudely sexual, but Allergan combats that impression too, ingeniously presenting them almost as a feminist issue. The company says it's "empowering" women with information about their options.

The tag line for the Natrelle collection: "To each her own."

Studies of breast-implant users reveal that women "aren't getting them to attract men, but to feel greater confidence in their femininity," says Robert Grant, president of the Allergan Medical division.

Presumably, women whose natural attributes have Natrelle enhancements will gain self-confidence from each masculine head that turns when they walk past.

"Nearly 400,000 women did something fabulous for themselves last year," is Allergan's message about Inamed's breast implants. But to Grant that number isn't fabulous enough.

"The $3.2 billion price for Inamed isn't worth it for us" at that rate, Grant says. "We can grow (the rate of annual implants) to in excess of one million procedures."

Fillers. How does Allergan want to be like Disneyland? You might say it transports its customers to a Fantasyland but, no, it's looking to create a "total experience" for its customers, as Disney does. Grant's children, he explains, don't want to go to Magic Mountain, because "it's just a bunch of roller coasters." Instead, they want to go to Disneyland for the "total experience."

To flesh out the face-changing experience, Allergan recently launched Juvederm, a line of dermal fillers designed to be used in conjunction with Botox.

Like Botox, they're injected into the face to remove wrinkles and folds. Unlike Botox, they fill out the skin instead of temporarily paralyzing facial muscles.

Allergan also pairs Juvederm with Botox in advertising styles.

A slogan for Juvederm is "Parentheses have a place - but not on your face." That refers to Juvederm's ability to temporarily smooth out the curved folds that run between the nose and the corners of the mouth.

The comparable Botox slogan is "Lose your elevens," referring to Botox injections that temporarily eliminate the pair of vertical frown lines between the eyebrows.

Botox. Allergan aims to change consumers' impressions of Botox too, even though the drug has already achieved blockbuster success. Women and men waging war on their wrinkles got 4.1 million Botox injections last year, at roughly $300 to $600 per treatment, which helped Allergan reach $3 billion in sales.

But Allergan wants much more.

"Only 3 percent of women who can afford dermal fillers or Botox are actually getting them today," Grant says. To figure out how to persuade the remaining 97 percent that they're missing out on a good thing, Allergan turned to consumer surveys.

"We did research and found that when people said they were concerned about "safety issues" with Botox. ... the real issue was that people didn't want a frozen face," Grant says. "That's why we came up with the campaign called "Freedom of Expression."

Its goal is to tell people that they can eliminate wrinkles, except for a few that allow them to make facial expressions, if doctors inject only small amounts of Botox,

The ad campaign spotlights actress Virginia Madsen, who discusses her own use of Botox and her ability to convey emotions.

"My question to working mothers," Madsen says, "is 'Why not? Why not do something that's just for you?' It's nice to give yourself a little gift."

She compares her openness about using Botox to years ago when actress Catherine Deneuve discussed using hair coloring.

Now, for many women, hair coloring is routine. Allergan wants people to think the same way about wrinkle removers and breast enhancements.

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.